Jack is Cooking Mattar Batata... Or something Similar

Well Hello Internet!

as part of my continuing experimentation in learning to cook indian food, i made a tomato based curry with potatoes and green beans.  The Recipe i started with called it Mattar Batata, and was made with potatoes and green peas (Green Peas are called Mattar).  However i didn't have any green peas, and instead i had beans.  So the name Mattar Batata is not really correct and this should really be called something else, probably with the name Aloo in it (Aloo is potatoes).

Anyhow its very easy to make.

Heres what i used in my made up curry based off of Mattar Batata.  As with my other recipes for indian food i will divide the spices into groups, for when they need to be added to the mix.

3 Tbspns Olive Oil

(GROUP A)
1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 dried red chillies (broken)
1/2 teaspoon asafetida

1 lb Potatoes (cut into one inch cubes)
2 Carrots (diced)
1/2 an onion (diced)
1 clove garlic (diced)

(GROUP B)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon sugar

A Handful of green beans (put your two hands together and however many beans fit in there.  thats how many you need!! )

1 tomato (finely diced)
1 80z can crushed tomatoes

So first!

Organize your Spices into two bowls, and have them ready.

Heat up the oil in a medium sized pot, and add in Spice Group A:

SPICE GROUP A

 Cook for about 10 seconds, and then add in the onions, garlic, and carrots.  stir and cook until the onions are a little wilted, and then add the potatoes.  fry the potatoes until they start going brown.  don't worry if they are sticking, let them stick.  This will add to the flavor!

Once the Potatoes are browned add in Spice Group B:

SPICE GROUP B

Stir them together and then add half a cup of water (it won't cover it completely).  Bring to a boil and boil for about 10 minutes (or until the potatoes are soft).  The water will mostly boil off at this point, but some should remain.

At this point you can add in the beans, the tomato, and the crushed tomatoes, and simmer for a further 5-7 minutes - or until the beans are tender, but still a little crunchy (As good beans should be!)

Everything in the Pot

and that's it!  Serve it with some Rice.

YUMM!

Jack is Cooking Mostly Macro Banh Mi

Well Hello Internet!

its been a couple of weeks, and i have a few posts lingering that i have to put up! but heres a quick one in the mean time.  Last night for dinner i made some Mostly Macrobiotic (almost but not quite) Vietnamese Sandwiches (otherwise known as Banh Mi)

i made them with tempeh instead of the roast pork that is normally in these delicious sandwiches, but i tailored this tempeh to be just as delicious.  

heres what you'll need:

for the carrots:

2 carrots julienned

1 daikon julienned

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup white vinegar

2 tablespoons rice syrup

some salt

for the tempeh:

1 package of tempeh

2 tablespoons of ketchup

1 tablespoon soy sauce

2 inches of ginger

2-3 cloves of garlic

half a lemon 

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 tablespoon hot sesame oil

for the sandwiches:

baguettes

spicy mayonaise (mayonaise + sriracha)

cilantro

cucumbers

onion

So First make the carrot slaw

to do this put the water, vinegar and rice syrup in pan and bring to a boil.  transfer to a bowl and let it cool down.  put in the carrots, and the daikon with some salt.  i put in some dried cranberries for some extra goodness too.  let this sit for 30 minutes to an hour, turning every now and then.

While these are festering we can cook the tempeh.  first its good to steam it.  Tempeh is always better steamed first.  so while its steaming, prepare the sauce.  put the ketchup, ginger, garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, olive oil, lemon juice, and apple cider vinegar together in pan and stir and cook until it boils.

yay!  this is an awesome BBQ sauce, good to put on any kind of meat, or tempeh to make it taste more like BBQ.

 when the tempeh has steamed for 20 minutes or so, pour this sauce all over it, and then cook it in a skillet for about 15 minutes at a medium heat.  now the tempeh is all done!

now all to do is to make the sandwich! so toast the baguette, slather on some spicy mayonnaise (you can make it more or less spicy by the amount of sriracha sauce you put on)  put some tempeh on the roll, then the onions, the cucumbers, some of the carrots and daikon, and top it off with a bunch of cilantro!

the word is that this is as good or better than any of the sandwich places!  (except Nicky's of course.  that place is the bomb.  but they should make a tempeh sandwich for a veggie option instead of a portabello...)

mmm mmmm delicious!

Jack is Cooking Root Vegetable and Leek Soup

Well Hello Internet!

This past sunday, julie and i decided to make a Root Vegetable and Leek Soup!

its very easy to make.

heres what you need

1 leek

1 potato

1 rutabaga

3 carrots

3 parsnips

1 onion

2 inches of ginger

parsley

chicken stock (3-4 cups)

salt and pepper (1/2 tablespoon each- more pepper if you want)

cinnamon

half and half (1/2 cup)

first chop everything up into 2 inch cubes (except the ginger.  chop that up pretty finely)

then with a little butter sauté the carrots, onions, ginger, and parsley for about 5 minutes, or until the onions start getting a little clear

put the rest of the vegetables in the pot with the chicken stock (enough that all the vegetables are covered)

cook for about 45 minutes.  at this point all the veggies should be nice and soft.  take a potato masher

and mash them all together.  i prefer the masher to an immersion blender, because i like it still a little chunky.  then add in the half and half, the salt and pepper, and the cinnamon (just a dash)

cook it for 15 more minutes, then serve.  i served it with a spoon of greek yogurt, some chives, and a dash more cinnamon

mmmm mmmm delicious

Jack is Cooking Christmas Dinner

Well Hello Internet!

So the last 10 posts have all been about Christmas Dinner, and i made so many things, that they've been pushed off the main page here.  so i decided to make one conglomerate posting with everything i made!

Heres what Rosie and I made (if you click on the links you will be taken to the individual post):

Gluten Free Croissants
Gluten Free Chipolata Sausages
Gluten Free Pancetta Chestnut Stuffing
Ginger-Garlic Brussel Sprouts with Leeks
Mashed Carrots and Swedes
Roast Potatoes
Roast Turkey
Glazed Ham
Turkey Gravy
Gluten Free Mini Key Lime Meringue Pies
and
the Leftover Sandwich

Enjoy, and Happy Christmas to Everybody!

Jack

Jack is Cooking Christmas Leftovers Sandwiches! (on GF Bread!)

Well Hello internet!

So obviously we made a whole load of food, and so there was many many leftovers!

almost better than the meal, is the sandwiches you can make afterwards!

Heres how i make mine:

first the bread (gluten free here):

then i put some gravy on one side (if you put it in the fridge overnight, it will turn into a kind of gravy jelly!  its perfect for spreading on sandwiches, and if you want it to turn back to gravy just heat it up)

Then some stuffing

Then on the other side i put some of the Carrots, and also some of the Brussel Sprouts

Then some Turkey, and some Ham

And then a little more Gravy!

Then put the two halves together for one hell of a sandwich!

mmm mmm delicious!

Jack is Cooking Mashed Carrots and Swede (Rutabaga)

Well Hello Internet!

The other vegetable side dish in the Christmas Dinner that we made is mashed carrots and swedes.  this is something that my grandmother used to make, and is especially delicious.  In england the vegetable is called Swede, but here in america they call it a Rutabaga.

whatever you call it its pretty darn good.

This is the easiest thing we made!

heres what you'll need:
carrots
swedes
butter
salt and pepper
nutmeg

so first peel and cut all the vegetables and put them in a pot covered with water.  boil until they are tender, but not mushy

remove and strain, and put them back into the pot. and mash up with a potato masher

add some butter, salt, pepper, and a little bit of nutmeg, and mash again!  keep it a little lumpy though, you don't want this to be creamy.

so that's the carrots!

mmmm mmmm delicious!

Jack is Cooking Gluten Free Pancetta Chestnut Stuffing

Well Hello Internet!

Another Huge part of any christmas meal, or any meal involving turkey for that matter is the Stuffing.
Stuffing also contains a huge amount of Gluten, so my sister and I set out to make a gluten free stuffing.

We started with a recipe we saw on the food network, and then changed just about everything to make it far more delicious and far more Gluten Free.

Heres what you'll need:

3 cloves garlic
6 tablespoons butter
8 oz pancetta diced
2 large onions chopped
2 carrots peeled and chopped
2 tablespoons chopped Fresh Rosemary
1 large jar of roasted whole peeled chestnuts (coarsely chopped)
1 lb of crusty gluten free baguettes chopped up into little cubes(you can often find these in the frozen section of fancy-ish grocery stores.  but if you are gluten-free you probably know where to get these kinds of things.  Whole foods definitely has it, as do more and more stores these days)
1 cup of chicken/turkey broth
salt and pepper
2 large eggs beaten

First!
take 2 tablepoons of the butter and melt in a pan.  fry up the pancetta until its kinda crispy.

drain all the grease out and put into a bowl

Next,

take the rest of the butter and melt into a pan.  cook the onions, carrots, rosemary, and garlic together until the onions are tender.

stir in the chestnuts.

put everything in the bowl with the pancetta and stir until mixed.

add in the bread chunksand toss to coat.  add the broth until its nice and moist, season with salt and pepper, and then mix in the beaten eggs.

pour into a baking pan

If you are cooking a huge meal (as we were) it is advisable to do this the day before, and refrigerate until the next day when you are ready to cook.

so

next day!

put some of this stuffing inside the turkey!  yum yum

the rest of the stuffing cover with tinfoil and bake at 350 for 30 minutes  then remove the tinfoil and bake another 15 minutes

Heres a tip:  if you are cooking this stuffing as part of a larger meal, remember this takes only 45 minutes to cook, and the turkey takes like 4 hours or something.  so cook this at the end!

in my larger conglomerate post about Christmas Dinner i will talk about the timing of everything!

mmmm mmmm delicious!

Jack is Cooking Stir Fry Shrimp

tonight i am making stir fry shrimp

to make this you will need

some shrimp (deshelled)
carrots
asparagus
green onions
snap pees

rice
chili garlic sauce (or other stir fry sauce)